“Gumby” suspect and pal get probation for robbery

A man accused of attempting to rob a San Diego-area convenience store dressed as Gumby was placed on probation Wednesday for three years.

Jacob Kiss, 19, was sentenced in San Diego Superior Court. Jason Giramma, 20, received the same probation sentence.

Each pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of misdemeanor burglary. The case involved a 7-Eleven in Rancho Peñasquitos, California.

Their pleas were entered by their lawyers. Neither suspect appeared in the courtroom Wednesday.

Both men will be allowed to withdraw their pleas and may have their cases dismissed if they comply with all terms of probation — and show proof in six months that they’ve gotten jobs, done volunteer work or enrolled in school. They’ll have to show “that they’ve gotten their lives on track,” Deputy District Attorney Ramin Tohidi said outside the courtroom.

Police and prosecutors say that Kiss walked into a 7-Eleven at about 12:30 a.m. on September 5 dressed as the famous Claymation boy. He walked to the counter and told the clerk, “This is a robbery.” The clerk thought it was a joke.

Although Kiss then reached into his pocket, his bulky green costume gave him trouble. He fumbled for a few moments, then gave up and walked out of the store — with no new cash, but minus 26 cents that had fallen from his pocket.

While Kiss fumbled, the plainclothes Giramma had already exited and was waiting in a minivan.

The store’s surveillance camera caught the strange incident.

About a week later, the two suspects turned themselves in at San Diego police headquarters. They brought the Gumby suit, which detectives confiscated.

Kiss and Giramma were released that day. Five years later, the District Attorney’s Office filed misdemeanor charges.

Commissioner Robert Rice accepted the courtroom please. He ordered the men to report to county jail December 4 to be booked, then released.